Rent or Buy? Comparing Housing Costs

Who pays more per month for housing, renters or buyers? Here are the metro areas where renting made the biggest gains against buying in the fourth quarter of last year compared with a year earlier, according to Deutsche Bank calculations.

CHEAPER TO RENT? Atlanta saw the biggest drop in renters' monthly housing costs when compared with buyers'. For each dollar that a new buyer spent monthly, a new renter spent $1.34 at the end of 2013. It was $1.73 at the end of 2012. Atlanta is still a market, though, where buyers get the better deal.
Mike Stewart/Associated Press…

LAS VEGAS: A renter in Las Vegas at the end of last year paid $1.03 a month for every $1 a buyer spent. That's down from $1.28 a year earlier, and makes the rent-or-buy question a throw of the dice.
Joe Klamar/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images…

SACRAMENTO, Calif.: Renters got the upper hand in Sacramento at the end of last year, paying just 88 cents a month for each $1 spent by a buyer. In 2012, renters paid $1.12. Above, Sleep Train Arena, home of the NBA's Sacramento Kings.
Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press…

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.: Another California metro area where renters just beat out buyers is San Bernardino/Riverside, where a renter last year paid 95 cents a month for every $1 a buyer spent. In 2012, it was $1.18. Above crowds at a concert at Glen Helen Regional Park.
Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images…

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.: A renter spent $1.19 a month last year for every $1 spent by a buyer, down from $1.41 a year earlier. Above, the Jacksonville Jaguars take the field at a home game.
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ORLANDO, Fla.: A renter in Orlando paid $1.24 a month for every $1 a buyer spent last year, down from $1.44 in 2012.
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MIAMI: The comparison got a lot closer last year in Miami, where a renter paid $1.02 a month for every $1 a buyer spent. In 2012, it was $1.18.
Ty Wright/Bloomberg…

PHOENIX: The balance tilted last year in favor of renters in Phoenix, who paid 89 cents a month for every $1 a buyer spent. In 2012, it was $1.05. Above, an Arizona Diamondbacks game in Phoenix.
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LOS ANGELES: Renters extended their advantage last year in Los Angeles, paying 80 cents a month for every $1 a buyer spent. In 2012, it was 95 cents.
Joe Klamar/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images…

ST. LOUIS: Renters got a slightly better deal in St. Louis last year, although they still spent more than buyers: $1.32 a month for every $1 a buyer paid, compared with $1.44 in 2012.
Jeff Roberson/Associated Press…

CHICAGO: The math also tilted somewhat more toward renters in Chicago, who paid $1.34 a month for every $1 buyers spent, compared with $1.46 a year earlier.
Saul Loeb/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images…